A Dangerous Journey, A Conflict Within
by Ratt9
Summary: Waka meets up with Amaterasu in Kamiki Village. Waka sees a prophecy that says that they must work together to kill Orochi. They don't like each other at first, but eventually...who knows? Rated T for some violence, but not too much. Enjoy!
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter One: A Destined (Yet Rather Unwelcome) Meeting**

Waka, the last of the Moon Tribe, was on a quest. A very small, stupid one, he had to admit, but it was a quest nonetheless. He followed around a large brown dog in small circles. He felt very stupid doing so, but the dog had stolen his flute, and Waka needed it back. The dog walked slowly, so Waka did the same.

"Ma Cherie," he said to the canine in his velvety voice, struggling to keep his patience, "would you be so kind as to give me my flute back?"

Some of the villagers were staring at the prophet with strange looks as if they were questioning his saneness. Waka sighed. He wasn't surprised. He, Captain Waka, the Tao Master, was walking in circles after a dog.

He did not know why he did not just grab the dog and pull the flute out of its mouth, thus saving his dignity. Perhaps the reason was that he was just too weary from traveling for two days.

Waka had been passing through Kamiki Village when the elder's wife, Mrs. Orange, had insisted that Waka try one of her cherry cakes. She took him into her house and then proceeded to beat the crap out of the fruit. Then, she beat the crap out of some bread and then beat them all together. It had been a very strange process, but it had tasted great.

"Ukele!" Waka heard a little kid call. The brown dog's ears perked up and looked over to which the voice was coming from. The dog, whose name was apparently 'Ukele,' started to wag his curly tail and gave an excited yip. He still was holding Waka's flute.

"Come here, Ukele!" the kid called again. Ukele went bounding over to him. The kid gave the dog an affectionate pat and commanded, "drop." Ukele spit out the flute and licked his master's face. "Good boy, Ukele!" the boy praised lovingly. He rubbed the canine's ears.

The little kid walked over to Waka and presented his flute to him. "Merci," Waka thanked, grasping his precious flute and wiping off the dog slobber on his clothes.

"Sorry about my dog, Ukele," the boy apologized.

"Oh, that's quite alright," pardoned Waka, trying to sound patient.

"My name's Toshiro," the young child painfully pressed on. "What's yours?"

"Waka."

Toshiro's eyes lit up as he grew excited. "You mean Captain Waka the Tao Master?" the kid clarified excitedly.

"So you've heard of me, then," Waka sighed.

"Yes!" Toshiro exclaimed so loud that his shout probably could have been heard from miles away. Ukele jumped back a little, startled by the sudden noise.

_Gosh! _thought Waka. _How can a six year old make such noise?_

"You are so amazing! You…" Toshiro then went on and on about all the amazing things Waka had done.

_If only he knew about the drastic things I've done_.

Waka had, over 200 years ago, piloted the Ark of Yamato to the Celestial Plain. The Ark, built by the Moon Tribe, was basically a huge jail for demons. One of the demons contained inside the Ark of Yamato at the time Waka had taken it to the Celestial Plain was Orochi. Orochi escaped from the Ark and destroyed the Celestial Plain. For that, Waka was responsible.

Then, when the Celestials saw Orochi, they all rushed onto the Ark of Yamato, thinking that it would be a safe place and not knowing that there were even more demons in there. Before Waka could get to them to warn them of their mistake, the demons had already killed them all.

Then, Waka, realizing that the only way to get rid of the demons in the Ark was to crash it, attempted to do this, willing to sacrifice his own life in the process. Unfortunately for him, he wasn't very good at crashing. He ended up crashing on Earth in a lake. The Ark broke and all the demons came swarming out of it, threatening all of humanity. _That _wouldn't look very good on a resume!

It took Waka a few moments to realize that Toshiro had stopped talking and was looking up expectantly at him. "Well?" the boy asked with hope-filled eyes.

Waka bent down to be more at the boy's level of height. "Excuse moi, what was that?" Waka asked.

"I said, 'would you like to stay in the village tonight?'" Toshiro told him tolerantly. "Please?"

Waka was about to say no, but he then had a prophecy.

_White wolf with red markings…Amaterasu, the reincarnation of the Goddess Okami, will appear._

_The reincarnation of Okami_? Waka wondered. _Hmmm_…

He looked back at Toshiro and smiled. "Sure."

Toshiro smiled widely and started dancing around.

That night, Waka, while everyone else had gone inside, waited outside on the grass next to the top of a tall waterfall that was in the village. In just a few hours, his prophesy came true. A white wolf with red markings and small wings on her legs came rushing through the village, leaving a trail of yellow flowers behind her the disappeared after she lifted her foot. Waka jumped down in front of her, causing her to come to an abrupt and confused stop.

"Bonjour," Waka greeted. "I am Waka, the Gods' gift to man."

"I'm Issun, and whatdya want?" a voice seemingly coming from the wolf declared.

_Issun? _Was this the wrong wolf? _No, surely not. This is a Goddess, no doubt about it_, Waka assured himself. Upon closer inspection, Waka noticed a little green thing bouncing on the wolf's head.

"Oh, bonjour, my bouncing little friend. Is this the Goddess Amaterasu?"

"Yeah, and how would you know we were here?" Issun shouted. He was a little green Ponacle and he was bouncing up and down on the great God's nose.

_Annoying creature_, thought Waka.

"I am a prophet," replied Waka.

"You half-baked prophet, whadya want with us?"

Waka drew his sword. "Can you defeat me, the Gods' gift to man, Goddess Amaterasu?" Waka challenged, pointing the blade at the wolf's face.

**Thank you everyone for reading!!! I will try to update soon!!! Please, please, PLEASE review! That really encourages me! Please give me suggestions or something! Thanks! **

**P.S.: I know this doesn't really follow the storyline, but Waka's past is true. I got that information off of: **.com/page/Tao+Master+Waka?t=anon

**Thanks again for reading, and please stay tuned!!!**

**-Ratt9**

**3/29/2009**


	2. Chapter Two: A Prophecy

_Recap of Chapter One: Waka is passing through Kamiki Village when a dog steals his flute. The dog's owner, a little kid named Toshiro, retrieved the flute and, upon realizing that Waka was the Tao Master, invites him to stay the night in the village. Just then, Waka sees a prophecy that the Sun Goddess' reincarnation, whose name is Amaterasu, will appear. Waka agrees to stay the night, and sure enough, Amaterasu shows up that night._

LAST TIME:::

"_Oh, bonjour my little bouncing friend. Is this the goddess Amaterasu?"_

"_Yeah, and how would you know we were here?" Issun shouted. He was a little green Ponacle and he was bouncing up and down on the great God's nose._

Annoying creature,_ thought Waka. _

"_I am a prophet," replied Waka. _

"_Ya half-baked prophet, whadya want with us?"_

_Waka drew his sword. "Can you defeat me, the Gods' gift to man, Goddess Amaterasu?" Waka challenged, pointing the blade at the wolf's face._

**Chapter Two: The Prophecy**

Amaterasu, who had been listening to the conversation intently this whole time, began to growl and bared her teeth.

"This is how I get my point across," Waka said, still pointing his sword at Amaterasu. "Literally."

The great white wolf lunged at him, but Waka smoothly dodged the advancement. "You are weaker than you used to be, Amaterasu," he commented. Amaterasu snarled louder.

"You gonna` take that, Ammy?!" the annoying little green bug shouted. Amaterasu howled in response. She then jumped at Waka again.

She just barely missed. Suddenly, a huge tidal wave came crashing down on him. Waka sensed that the Goddess had used a Celestial Brush technique. Maybe she wasn't as weak as he first thought, after all…

Waka got knocked to the ground, but only remained there for a few seconds before he got to his feet again. He then charged at the Goddess with his sword and slashed her side. She yelped for a swift second and fell back, but then regained her balance and flung her Divine Instrument at him. She missed.

At that moment, Waka foresaw another future event:

_Both Sun and Moon must work together on a quest to destroy the 8-headed snake, which has come out of its 200 year sleep…the opposites must work with each other, and not against each other._

_What?! _thought Waka in shock as he drew back from Amaterasu. He didn't want the white wolf to distract him from his thoughts.

"What is it, ya half-baked prophet?" Issun taunted.

Waka hesitated. "I…foresaw something…and…it involves…Amaterasu and I to…kill Orochi."

"What?!" Issun exclaimed.

"Yes…that was exactly _my _reaction, my little bouncing friend."

"I don't believe you. You're just a half-baked prophet! How do we know that you aren't just making this up?!" The little green Ponacle drew his small little sword and Amaterasu growled at Waka.

Waka sighed. Speaking to Amaterasu, he said, "Ma Cherie, you know as well as I do that I don't have a good reason for making this up. I do not wish to do this any more than you, and I still believe that I don't need your help destroying the 8-headed Orochi. You are quite weak. Oh well, one can't dwell on past victories, I suppose."

Amaterasu was still in a fighting-stance. "Hey, Ammy, how bout' we ask a _real _prophet?" Issun suggested, eyeing Waka. Waka did not appear offended, which made Issun determined to do so.

"This is stupid, my little bouncing friend," Waka concluded with a sigh.

"Let's go to that weird lady in Agata Forest," said Issun to his travel companion. "What was her name…oh yeah, Madam Fawn. At least she gives _real _predictions!"

"Very well. Let's go," Waka said, eager to get this quest over with so that he could go back to being alone.

"Fine," Issun pouted. Waka was starting to wish that he hadn't stayed in Kamiki Village after all.

It took them the rest of that night and half of the next day to reach the cave in which Madam Fawn had set up her house. As they entered, they heard Madam Fawn's voice say, "You have arrived at last."

"Bonjour, Ma Cherie. Would you tell Amaterasu and Issun the prophecy so that they believe me?" Waka requested.

"Yes, of course. But, I require a small fee," said the old woman greedily.

"How much? Ya old hag, if you only knew how long we've been traveling _just _to hear this one stupid prediction…"

"Oh, I know," the woman cut Issun off. "I require 500 yen for my services. Hand it over if you want to hear the prediction."

Sighing, Issun handed over some yen to the lady. Ammy sat down on the floor, her eyes fixated on the female prophet.

"I forsee…" the woman began, "Both Sun and Moon must work together on a quest to destroy the 8-headed snake, which has come out of its 200 year sleep…the opposites must work with each other, and not against each other."

"That's the exact thing that I foresaw," sighed Waka to the bug and the wolf. "If you ask me, Ma Cherie, this whole trip was just a big waste of time and money."

"Any more words of advice, Madam Fawn?" Issun asked, ignoring Waka's statement.

"Yes…but I will require another 500 yen," she replied.

"No way!" exclaimed Issun.

"Oh, very well. I foresee…always trust what is seen of the future. You will know what I mean when the time comes. That is all for now."

As the threesome exited the cave, Issun started shouting at Ammy about how they never should have gone to Kamiki Village in the first place, and then Amaterasu proceeded to pick up the little green Ponacle in her mouth. A few moments later, she spit him out. He drew his little sword and pointed it at Waka.

"It's all your stupid fault that you waited for us in that stupid village!" Issun accused.

"It's not _my _fault that I can see the future and you can't!" argued Waka, who was already in a bad mood.

"Oh yeah? Well, you're just a half-baked prophet!"

"At least _I _don't charge a ridiculous price for a simple fortune!" Waka exclaimed.

"At least _she's _a professional!" Issun huffed.

"And whoever said that _I'm _not?"

"Me!"

"You, my little bouncing friend? And who made _you _an expert?!"

"Stop calling me little!"

"I am going to squash you if you don't shut up!"

"I'd like to see you try," challenged Issun matter-of-factly.

"My pleasure!"

Suddenly, Amaterasu, obviously tired of hearing the two argue over trivial things, broke up the fight by biting Waka's arm and then putting Issun in her mouth, growling.

Oh, what a pleasant start to their journey!

**To be continued…**

**Thank you for reading Chapter Two: The Prophecy. I really hope you enjoyed it. **_**Please, Please, PLEASE**_**review. I really love it when people review my work. It makes me feel very, very happy :). I'd love to thank everyone who has left a review.**

**Please keep in mind that I am not allowed on the computer very much during the week for anything but school or story writing, so once I write a new chapter, I might not be able to get it on the website until the weekend. **

**If you have any suggestions, comments, or problems with this story, please let me know. REVIEW!!! REVIEW, REVIEW, REVIEW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!**

**-Ratt9 (3/30/2009)**

**P.S.: It's not that I don't like Issun. I really do like Issun a lot. I am just trying to follow his personality. I do not actually think that Issun is annoying!!!!! :)**


	3. Chapter 3: Danger in Agata Forest

_Recap of Chapter Two: In the middle of a fight with Amaterasu, Waka gets a vision that basically says that he and Amaterasu must work together to kill Orochi. Issun and Ammy, who needed more proof that this was true, dragged Waka along with them on a trip to see Madam Fawn, another prophet who lived in Agata Forest. She confirms Waka's vision to be true, and thus their journey begins!_

LAST TIME:::

"_I'm going to squash you if you don't shut up!" [declared Waka to Issun]_

"_I'd like to see you try," challenged Issun matter-of-factly._

"_My pleasure!"_

_Suddenly, Amaterasu, obviously tired of hearing the two argue over trivial things, broke up the fight by biting Waka's arm and then putting Issun in her mouth, growling._

_Oh, what a pleasant start to their journey!_

**Chapter Three: Danger in Agata Forest**

No one wanted to admit it, but Amaterasu, Issun, and Waka were lost in Agata Forest. No one wanted to admit it, but when someone finally _did _say something about it, it was Issun, and he pretty much summed up what everyone was thinking. "I think we're walking in circles."

"Thank you for your input, my little bouncing friend," Waka replied.

Ammy let out a sigh. The air was chilly and crisp, as it was the beginning of what Waka prophesized would be a long, harsh, freezing winter.

Amaterasu shot Waka a glare that he interpreted as, "And what do you propose we do? I can't pick up any scents because of the rain." Waka was quite good at knowing what someone was thinking based on their eyes and their gestures.

It had only been a few hours since they had left the warmth and safety of Madam Fawn's house, which was located inside a cavern, but already the group was feeling the effects of the ever-falling cold rain.

"Ammy, I'm pretty sure we've passed by this rock already," Issun said, shivering.

The wolf just snorted and shook herself off, sending little water droplets flying everywhere.

"How about we stop somewhere and wait out the storm, Ma Cherie?" Waka suggested.

Amaterasu, in response to his statement, raised her head defiantly as if to say, "And why should _I _do anything that _you _want me to?" Waka sighed. He could tell this was going to be a long expedition. It would be more enjoyable if he actually got along with all of his companions.

_I hate prophets and their prophecies. Why can't they just accept the events as they happen? You are no exception, Waka. Don't rely so much on visions. _The statement suddenly popped into Waka's head. It wasn't his own thoughts; no, the thought was in the form of a female voice.

Waka whizzed around and stopped walking. _What the heck?! _he thought frantically. Had he just heard someone else's thoughts?

_What's the matter? _the female voice said again in Waka's mind. _You've never heard of speaking telepathically? _The voice was taunting.

Waka looked over at Amaterasu, who had stopped walking, also. This caused Issun to go into a whole string of complaints. Amaterasu had what looked like a grin on her face. Waka kept walking, grasping what had just happened.

He could speak to the Goddess using telepathy.

_You're opinion on prophets is unjustified, Ma Cherie, _Waka directed the thought to Amaterasu. When Issun's stream of questions went unanswered, he stopped talking.

_That's why it's an opinion_, she replied in a know-it-all tone.

_People worship you, but I don't know why, _Waka commented. _If they only tried to have a conversation with you, they might not think of you so highly._

There was then silence in the forest except for the pounding of the rain hitting the forest floor. Something was wrong, and both Sun Goddess and Moon Tribesman could sense it.

Amaterasu started snarling and got in fighting stance, though she could not sense the direction from which the attack would come; Waka drew his sword. Issun, following his companions' examples, drew his tiny sword, though he didn't know what exactly was going on.

Suddenly, a creature emerged from the bushes. He was a green, gaunt looking fellow, and behind him was a flying fish with what appeared to be silver, metal wings. Waka suddenly had a vision:

_Beware the approaching army._

Huh? What the heck did _that _mean? What army? They were in the middle of the _forest _for gosh sake! What did an army have to do with _them_?

_Never mind_, he thought to himself. _Focus on this now_. _Worry about the army or whatever later_.

The green imp lashed out at the white and crimson wolf with an oversized claw. Waka, because he didn't care much about the wolf's wellbeing in the first place—and if she got hit maybe it would hit Issun and kill him—he didn't do anything to stop the attack.

Amaterasu suddenly appeared with a long, yellow whip and flung it wildly.

_You're not very good with that weapon_, Waka observed and sent the thought out to the wolf.

_I don't see you helping any_, Amaterasu retorted, using the Power Slash brush technique on her attacker.

Issun, who had had the courage of a bear before the enemy had appeared, was now cowering, burying himself within Ammy's thick fur coat.

The giant flying fish shot missiles down at Waka. One grazed the top of his shoulder, but he was otherwise unharmed. When he brought up his blade and struck the fish, it turned into some type of steel that served as a protection. When his sword made an impact with the fish, the only sound made was clashing metal.

What started as two monster/creature things soon became somewhere around 20.

_Beware of the approaching army_. Waka suddenly realized what those words had meant. Beware of the approaching army; the army in which he was fighting _now_!

Well, that would have been a great warning…if he had understood it _fifteen minutes ago_!

Amaterasu was struggling to hold off the advancing creatures. As they came closer, she backed up, but was startled forward a bit when she backed into a tree. She fought bravely, killing all of the monsters she could get her paws on, but there seemed like there would be no end to the stream of creatures.

What was worse was that it was still raining and Issun had been battered around so much that he had fallen unconscious. She and Waka were on the brink of that, too.

The group was totally surrounded. Amaterasu and Waka were covered in scrapes, gashes, and bruises. Ammy was panting heavily and Waka was using a tree to support himself enough to stay standing, fighting off the monsters as they came at him.

The situation was hopeless. What were they going to do?

**Hmm, I wonder…this story will be continued and be updated by either Wednesday, Thursday, or Friday at the latest. **

**Are you enjoying the story so far? REVIEW AND LET ME KNOW.**

**Are you not enjoying the story so far? REVIEW AND LET ME KNOW.**

**Do you have a suggestion for the story? REVIEW AND LET ME KNOW.**

**Do you have a comment for the story? REVIEW AND LET ME KNOW.**

**Do you have nothing to say about the story? REVIEW AND LET ME KNOW ANYWAY!!! :) lol**

**Well, I am trying really hard to finish this story because I hate it when authors don't finish a story. I am trying to write each chapter as quickly as I can, which isn't too hard seeing as I type 121 words per minute! **

**I would like to thank all of you who have reviewed, because without reviews, I would lose interest and stop writing the story.**

**Reviews are my inspirations. Even if you don't have an account, I have made it so that you can do an anonymous review! So there is no excuse lol! :)**

**Thank you for reading and I will try to update soon!**

**-Ratt9 (3/31/2009)**


	4. Chapter 4: Wildfire

_Recap of Chapter Three: Waka, Amaterasu, and Issun get lost in Agata Forest. It is pelting rain and is very cold. Waka just learns that Amaterasu can talk to him telepathically when suddenly they are surrounded by an army of creature/monster thingies. Amaterasu and Waka are both badly injured and Issun, who had been hiding in Amaterasu's fur, was knocked unconscious. It is an impossible situation. How will they escape (the reason why it has taken me two days to post this story up is because I haven't been able to think of a way for them to get out of this without dying. After hours of brainstorming about how they would escape, my best friend Nix, who I had asked to help me, came up with an amazing idea on how to destroy the creatures, and, when I combined it with my idea on how the threesome would escape, it turned into a somewhat heroic, somewhat cool, and somewhat cheesy idea. I hope you enjoy nonetheless.)? _

LAST TIME:::

_Amaterasu was struggling to hold off the advancing creatures. As they came closer, she backed up, but was startled forward a bit when she backed into a tree. She fought bravely, killing all of the monsters she could get her paws on, but there seemed like there would be no end to the stream of creatures._

_What was worse was that it was still raining and Issun had been battered around so much that he had fallen unconscious. She and Waka were on the brink of that, too._

_The group was totally surrounded. Amaterasu and Waka were covered in scrapes, gashes, and bruises. Ammy was panting heavily and Waka was using a tree to support himself enough to stay standing, fighting off the monsters as they came at him._

_The situation was hopeless. What were they going to do?_

**Chapter Four: Wildfire**

Waka and Amaterasu were going to die. _That _was inevitable. Even if they _did _escape from this massive horde, they would both most likely die of their injuries sooner or later.

Perhaps Issun would make it out alive, but truly; what were the chances of him being able to kill Orochi all by himself? Be realistic, folks. Issun is what, three inches tall? It's not like he could bounce so much and with so much force on the beast that he could knock out all of Orochi's eight heads, and then cut them off with his five inch-long sword.

_Or could he? Heh, heh, you never know…*evil smile*_

The imps and the flying fish were advancing on them quickly. All of a sudden, Amaterasu lost the small wings on her legs and turned a dirty white. Her red markings faded away, too, but you wouldn't notice unless you looked hard enough due to the fact that her coat was drenched with crimson blood.

Other than that, the Sun Goddess looked just like a normal wolf, and an under-kept one at that. Aside from the fact that her fur was all bloody, it was matted and ripped out in some places, too.

Waka knew the reason for the Goddess' sudden transformation was because she had used all of her power using Power Slash too many times. Waka also knew that it was just a matter of minutes before she regained them again.

He hoped that time would be soon.

Or not; if he died he would at least be freed from the guilt that has bound him for so long. He would rather not die—by all means he wasn't suicidal—but this situation was hopeless.

He heard Amaterasu whimper, but Waka was too preoccupied fighting his own fight to look over to her.

But then he sensed her power come back to her. As the stream of creatures around Waka thinned briefly, he could see that she looked like a Goddess again. She lashed out with her Divine Instrument, which was now a different coloured whip; an orange one.

It had stopped raining; now hail the size of small stones was falling from the sky, and the thunder and lightning hadn't stopped, either. Suddenly Issun regained consciousness and screamed a cry of despair at what condition his comrades (or rather, _comrade_ [he didn't care about Waka]) were in.

Blood flowed out of a gash in Amaterasu's front left leg. The tip of her right ear was partially torn off; a large slash went across her snout in a horizontal line. She had so many more injuries, too.

Suddenly, Amaterasu, using the Cherry Bomb brush technique, created a round, orange bomb and materialized it in the middle of a crowd of creatures, whose numbers had gone up from 2 to 20 to over 220 in a matter of thirty minutes.

Waka, knowing that such a bomb would _explode _soon, did the wise thing and stumbled away a bit from what would soon be Ground Zero. Ammy did the same.

Just then, a huge flash of lightning hit a nearby tree, catching it on fire and sending it crashing down, lighting a nearby one ablaze, too. The hail turned into rain again.

That's when the bomb exploded.

When the bomb exploded, it set the forest blazing with what looked to be a scarlet scorching firestorm.

Waka heard Issun scream and Ammy howl at the time of the blast, but Waka was too concerned with saving himself to bother himself with the wolfy Goddess.

When he managed to limp to safety, he waited for five minutes before he decided to go and find Amaterasu when his moral got the best of him...and…and…another, strange feeling deep within his heart that he did not yet want to put words to.

He limped out of his small cave and into the wildfire.

**To be continued…**

**I hope you all enjoyed it! However, it was really random trying to figure out how Waka and Amaterasu would cheat death…well, at least, for now. Who knows what will happen to them? You can ask my best friend Nix: I am a bit of a fan for tragic endings. What do **_**you **_**want to happen?**

**I will try to write the next chapter soon. How long do you guys think I should make it? Where would you like them to go if they survive? I need suggestions peoples!!! You can do this by reviewing!!! You can even do this if you do not have an account! Please! **

**If you don't feel like reviewing, you can just say, "hi" if you want. As always, I thank everyone who has reviewed. Sorry if I seem to obsess a bit about it but it is my **_**only **_**form of inspiration to keep writing it. **

**Thanks for everyone who has left all of those nice comments for me! !!**

**-Ratt9**

**(4/02/2009)**


	5. Chapter 5: A Strange New Land

_Recap of Chapter Four: Waka and Amaterasu are badly injured while fighting a whole army of monster thingies in Agata Forest. They are fighting a losing battle for their lives. As the sun goes down, Amaterasu creates a bomb just as lightning strikes a tree, causing a forest fire. Once Ammy's bomb goes off, the fire just gets even larger. Waka gets to safety, leaving his wolf companion out in the forest. Then, he decides to go back for her, thus leaving the safety of the cave. _

LAST TIME:::

_Suddenly, Amaterasu, using the Cherry Bomb brush technique, created a round, orange bomb and materialized it in the middle of a crowd of creatures, whose numbers had gone up from 2 to 20 to over 220 in a matter of 30 minutes._

_Waka, knowing that such a bomb would _explode_ soon, did the wise thing and stumbled away a bit from what would soon be Ground Zero. Ammy did the same._

_Just then, a huge flash of lightning hit a nearby tree, catching it on fire and sending it crashing down, lighting a nearby one ablaze, too. The hail turned into rain again._

_That's when the bomb exploded._

_When the bomb exploded, it set the forest blazing with what looked to be a scarlet, scorching firestorm. _

_Waka heard Issun scream and Ammy howl at the time of the blast, but Waka was too concerned with saving himself to bother himself with the wolfy Goddess._

_When he managed to limp to safety, he waited for five minutes before he decided to go and find Amaterasu when his moral got the best of him…and…and…another, strange felling deep within his heart that he did not yet want to put words to._

_He limped out of his small cave and into the wildfire._

**Chapter Five: A Strange New Land**

Waka entered the searing flames, leaving the safety of the cave. The extent of his injuries was great, but he could handle anything.

As he limped around the burning forest, branches were coming crashing down, and every step he took brought a new wave of pain and heat.

"Amaterasu!" Waka called before coughing from the smoke.

He heard a soft whimper, but he could not tell the direction from which it came. Waka started to cough even more until he passed out from his injuries and too much smoke inhalation.

Amaterasu stumbled around almost blindly through the burning forest. She winced as she felt a heat wave hit her. White ashes floated all around. Her front leg, which had a large gash in it, was really bothering her and all of her paw-pads were torn and bleeding.

She had heard Waka call for her.

Where was he now?

She sniffed the air in an attempt to catch the prophet's scent, but the only thing she could smell was burning wood from the fiery forest around her.

She looked up. The flames shot up so high that it looked like they would go into the heavens. Suddenly, she saw Waka either unconscious or dead on the forest floor. She hesitated to approach him.

Issun started bouncing on her bloodstained nose.

"Let's leave him here, Ammy!" he suggested, a panicked tone in his voice. "If we don't get out now, we're going to be burned alive!"

_Thanks for stating the obvious, Issun, _Amaterasu thought to herself. _But, that _is _a tempting idea._

But Waka had the faint scent of shelter; a mossy rock smell.

She inferred that he had gone to safety, but had then left it to go and look for her and Issun. Well, probably minus the Issun part, but his intentions had most likely been good.

Unless of course there had been a bear or mountain lion or something in the cave that had caused him to leave, but it was doubtful.

Now, one question remained: Was he still alive?

Amaterasu bit his arm to find out. Waka winced. So he _was _alive.

Okay, so now it would be sort of worth the effort of dragging him off to safety with her, at least.

With the last bit of energy she had, and with a disappointed sigh from Issun when he realized that Waka wouldn't be left to die, Ammy took Waka's arm in her jaws and, following the trail of blood that had obviously led to the place where Waka had found shelter, dragged herself and the unconscious tribesman to the cave, which was just a little less than a quarter of a mile away.

Once inside the shelter, the adrenalin quickly left her and she fainted.

When Waka regained consciousness, his whole body ached. He rolled over with a quiet groan.

_How did I get here_, he wondered, _and I do not recall rescuing Amaterasu. Did _she _take me here? Oh well, I'll worry about that later._

He lay there for fifteen minutes before deciding to try to get to his feet. Suddenly Issun bounced up to him, looking very uninjured. Waka sighed and sat down.

"Hello, my bouncing little friend," he greeted.

Issun got straight to the point. "Hey, we just saved your hide!" he exclaimed. "You'd better show your thanks! You can do that by doing everything I tell you to do! Mwahahahaha!!! You can start by, say, jumping off a cliff!"

Waka stared at Issun with a blank expression.

"_What_?!" cried Issun, as if his request had been perfectly normal and reasonable. Suddenly, Ammy twitched and whined a bit. The sun shone into the cave.

She sat up and yawned. Waka was surprised that they hadn't both bled to death. He crawled to the opening of the den. The forest was devastating to look at.

Black, burnt, dead trees were everywhere, except some of the trees had just turned into ashes. No birds were singing, and not a thing stirred anywhere, it seemed.

Waka still sensed danger in the area, however, and Amaterasu did too. "We should leave now," Waka suggested. "Or, at least, we could wait till tomorrow morning to give our wounds more of a chance to heal," he corrected quickly, eyeing all his cuts and Amaterasu's front leg.

Amaterasu gave a nod. Waka tore off a piece of cloth from the bottom of his shirt and used it as a bandage for some of the many cuts on his body.

Out of niceness, he ripped some off for Ammy and wrapped it around her front leg. The next day, they were ready to go (well, sort of).

While they walked through the remains of the forest, Waka stated, "Sure is depressing out here, huh, Ma Cherie?"

In response, Amaterasu used the Bloom Celestial Brush technique. Suddenly, practically the whole forest burst out in pink blossoms as the dead trees suddenly came back to life.

As well as she could, Ammy joyfully frolicked through the forest that she just revived. Waka followed her. They walked along a log that led across a river.

They soon found themselves in a place with a giant sign saying, "Taka Pass." They were greeted with…guess what! A cursed zone!

"Ugh…" moaned Issun, "not here too!"

"This _is _quite unfortunate," Waka had to admit. "We will have to go find the Guardian Sapling and bring it back to life, as it is obviously dead."

_You mean _I _will bring it back to life_, Amaterasu retorted, sending the thought to Waka.

"Well…yes," Waka laughed nervously.

Amaterasu walked around, trying to find the way to get to the sapling. Once she found the way, she began to head toward it. She, followed by Waka, leapt up onto a ledge. She collapsed on the ledge.

"What is it?" asked Waka.

_My front leg…it's not very strong right now because of the injury…it hurts a lot, _replied Amaterasu.

"Ammy, what's wrong?" asked a concerned Issun.

"Can you walk?" wondered Waka pretty much indifferently.

_Not sure yet…It's worse than it was earlier._

"Well, my knee has been killing me this whole trip, so I can't carry you," warned Waka.

Now Amaterasu was immobilized and they were all surrounded by a Cursed Zone. This was just great. Why were they always so lucky?

**To be continued…**

**Well, I hope you liked it! Well, I decided to go with Keroanne1 's idea for Taka Pass. Don't worry; I **_**will **_**include the tigers. **


	6. Chapter 6: Striped Danger

(**Author's Note—I am SO sorry this took so long, but I had finals to study for and THEN my mom didn't let me use the laptop for two weeks because I got in trouble for being mean to my brother and stuff. Thank you for being so patient!)**

_Recap of Chapter Five: After Amaterasu and Waka make it out of the burning Agata Forest, they head to Taka pass, which is covered in a Cursed Zone. As they try to make it up the cliff to the Guardian Sapling to bring it back to life, Amaterasu's front leg—which was injured in the fire—gives out. Waka, who was also badly injured during the fire, does not have the strength to carry her the rest of the way. And Issun sure wouldn't be able to do it. They are stranded on a ledge, surrounded by a Cursed Zone. What will happen next? _

LAST TIME:::

_Amaterasu walked around, trying to find the way to get to the sapling. Once she found the way, she began to head toward it. She, followed by Waka, leapt up onto a ledge. She collapsed on the ledge._

"_What is it?" asked Waka._

My front leg…it's not very strong right now because of the injury…it hurts a lot,_ replied Amaterasu._

"_Ammy, what's wrong?" asked a concerned Issun._

"_Can you walk?" wondered Waka pretty much indifferently._

Not sure yet…It's worse than it was earlier.

"_Well, my knee has been killing me this whole trip, so I can't carry you," warned Waka. _

_Now Amaterasu was immobilized and they were all surrounded by a Cursed Zone. This was just great. Why were they always so lucky?_

**Chapter Six: Striped Danger**

Waka and Issun stood there helplessly. Issun began to jump up and down on the wolf's back. "Come on, Ammy!" Issun begged. "Get up!" She sighed and looked around.

_I'll try_, she concluded. Slowly but surely, she lifted herself to her paws, careful to keep the injured one off the ground. _Now it's just a matter of getting up the ledges._

Practically as slow as a tortoise, Amaterasu made it up all of the outcrops and to the Guardian Sapling. It was all withered.

"Okay Ammy, work your magic!" Issun exclaimed. Amaterasu used the Bloom technique and the tree went into full bloom.

"Wonderful," Waka said sarcastically, looking behind him.

_What's wrong? _Amaterasu wanted to know. She turned and saw what was the problem.

As I have already told you, Waka, Amaterasu, and Issun are very lucky. In fact, they are so lucky that there were two snarling tigers closing in on them, bloodlust in their eyes.

Issun bounced onto Amaterasu's snout and pulled out his little black sword. He looked at Waka and said, "These tigers might be a problem for _you_, but not THE GREAT ISSUN!!! Fear not, for I—" Before he could say any more, the sun goddess snatched the little ponacle into her mouth and looked for a way to escape.

As the tigers inched closer, their chances of escape lessened. "Hmm…" Waka said loudly, making sure Issun could hear him. "We could always feed Issun to these tigers so they would leave us alone…Oh! Did I say that out loud?" His voice was taunting. Then, he said thoughtfully, "Never mind. Issun is much too small." Waka smiled mentally as he heard Issun's muffled shouts at him from inside the wolf's mouth.

Just then, Waka had an idea. He ignored the pain in his knee as he ran past the tigers and jumped off the cliff. He landed not-so-gracefully, but he was still alive.

Amaterasu got the idea and limped past the tigers. They pounced, but she dodged them and the tigers ended up ramming into each other. Ammy jumped, Issun still in her mouth. They had escaped!

**To be continued…**

**I'm sorry this chapter was so short, but I need to figure out what will happen to the trio next. I know this chapter wasn't my best, but I hope you enjoyed it somewhat anyway. I will try to get chapter 7 up as soon as possible, but I will be going up to a very northern part of the world soon for two weeks and there will be no internet there. So sorry if there is a sort-of long delay. As always, review!!!**

**-Ratt9 **


	7. Chapter 7: Talking Sparrows

**Okay, fine…so I haven't updated in a year. …or two…**

**I've uh…been busy.**

**Yeah. –looks around nervously- Busy for uh…two years… .z.**

…

**Sorry .z.**

**And this isn't even a complete chapter…. .z.**

**Still, enjoy!**

_Recap of Chapter Six: Waka, Amaterasu, and Issun are in Taka Pass at the withered Guardian Sapling. Amaterasu revives it and, to thank them for their efforts, there was a welcoming committee! Two angry tigers ready to try and rip their heads off! :D Wonderful thank you gift, I know. They all escaped by jumping off a cliff. _

LAST TIME:::

_As the tigers inched closer, their chances of escape lessened. "Hmm…" Waka said loudly, making sure Issun could hear him. "We could always feed Issun to these tigers so they would leave us alone…Oh! Did I say that out loud?" His voice was taunting. Then, he said thoughtfully, "Never mind. Issun is much too small." Waka smiled mentally as he heard Issun's muffled shouts at him from inside the wolf's mouth._

_Just then, Waka had an idea. He ignored the pain in his knee as he ran past the tigers and jumped off the cliff. He landed not-so-gracefully, but he was still alive._

_Amaterasu got the idea and limped past the tigers. They pounced, but she dodged them and the tigers ended up ramming into each other. Ammy jumped, Issun still in her mouth. They had escaped!_

**Chapter Seven: An Ancient Forest in Modern Times**

Waka and Amaterasu, on the bottom of the cliff, panted for breath. Amaterasu spit Issun out.

_What was _their _problem? _the white wolf asked angrily.

"Who knows?" Issun fumed, furiously brushing the drool off of him. "All I know is that it is quite unpleasant to be covered in wolf slobber!" Ammy seemed to grin.

"Where are we headed next?" Waka asked, mainly to himself. He got no replies. However, now that the cursed area was gone, they were free to cross Taka Pass. _And go where?_ he asked himself. He tried to bring up the map he had in his head. _After Taka Pass there is… _He couldn't see it. His mind was all jumbled up and couldn't recall the locations around him.

For the first time in his life, Waka needed a map.

He tried to think. _Was it Ryoshima Coast? Or was it called Ryoshoma Coast? Or something different? Shinshu Field? No…we passed that a long time ago. Why can't I remember?_

While Waka was frying his brains silently (men never want to admit they are lost and/or ask for directions—the reason why is beyond me), Amaterasu was noticing a rather large man trying to move a mountain.

Yes, he was literally trying to move a mountain. Leaving Waka alone with his thoughts and Issun to his ramblings, she walked closer.

Directing her thoughts to the man's head, she asked, _What are you doing?_

The man looked around, startled. He scanned the area with wide, frightened brown eyes until he looked down and saw the wolf. He calmed down, but only slightly, and continued pushing with all his might on the side of the mountain, as if he wished to move it.

_Well_, Ammy thought to herself with a wolfy grin, _considering how much he probably weighs, he might just do it! _She laughed mentally.

_What are you doing? _Amaterasu asked again. The man spun around as if he had been waiting for the voice in his head to come back.

"Who said that?" he exclaimed.

_I did. Now what are you doing? _

The man was freaked out, but he answered anyway. "I'm trying to move this wall so that I can get to Sasa Sanctuary!"

Go figure.

_I do not believe that you will succeed in your quest to move the wall_. And with that, Amaterasu went back to Waka and Issun.

_According to that man_, she told them both, _Sasa Sanctuary is beyond that wall_. _I can get in if I wanted to. Should we?_

"Good idea, Ammy! Let's go!" Issun exclaimed.

The three of them were able to walk through the mountain as if the rock had never even been there.

Oddly, the only acknowledgment this received was a tiny comment from Issun: "That was weird."

They walked down a path and entered a beautiful, large building. Giant sparrows were running around doing chores. One of the giant sparrows came out from behind a desk to greet them.

_Wait…sparrows? What the crap?_

"Welcome to Sasa Sanctuary!" greeted the sparrow. Ammy backed up a little in surprise.

_Sparrows…talk? _she asked Issun skeptically, and a little weirded out. Well, if a giant talking sparrow came up to _you_, wouldn't you be a little weirded out? Just a little?

To be continued…

Uh…sorry for the random cut off. I don't know when I'll be updating this again… -hides-

Still, review! I love reviews! They make updates faster. =]


End file.
